Migration from Turkey to Sweden: Integration, Belonging and Transnational Community

Description

The ‘refugee crisis’ and the recent rise of anti-immigration parties across Europe has prompted widespread debates about migration, integration and security on the continent. But the perspectives and experiences of immigrants in northern and western Europe have equal political significance for contemporary European societies. While Turkish migration to Europe has been a vital area of research, little scholarly attention has been paid to Turkish migration to specifically Sweden, which has a mix of religious and ethnic groups from Turkey and where now well over 100,000 Swedes have Turkish origins. This book examines immigration from Turkey to Sweden from its beginnings in the mid-1960s, when the recruitment of workers was needed to satisfy the expanding industrial economy. It traces the impact of Sweden's economic downturn, and the effects of the 1971 Turkish military intervention and the 1980 military coup, after which asylum seekers – mostly Assyrian Christians and Kurds – sought refuge in Sweden. Contributors explore how the patterns of labour migration and interactions with Swedish society impacted the social and political attitudes of these different communities, their sense of belonging, and diasporic activism. The book also investigates issues of integration, return migration, transnational ties, external voting and citizenship rights. Through the detailed analysis of migration to Sweden and emigration from Turkey, this book sheds new light on the situation of migrants in Europe. Cover Title Copyright Dedication Contents List of Illustrations Notes on Contributors 1. The 50th Anniversary of the Beginning of Migration from Turkey to Sweden: Lessons Concerning Integration, Cohesion, and Inclusion The History of Migration from Turkey to Sweden An Understudied Topic What is so Special about Turks in Sweden? The Broader Swedish Context: Rising Immigration Figures Turkish Diaspora Management meets Swedish Integration Debates 2. Reflections on the Issue of Integration Introduction The Question Why is this so? The Facts The TIES-project Findings Integration as Identification Integration as Participation Integration as Cohesion Conclusion 3. Nicknames in Diaspora: Tracing Migrant Tales of First-Generation Turkish Migrants in Sweden Introduction Notes on the Context and the Study Nicknaming in Diaspora Pre-Migration Occupations First Encounters with ‘the Swede’ Nicknames and Migrant Tales We are all Crazy: Crazy Mehmet Conclusion 4. The Turkish Generation Born in Sweden: Bridge-Builders or New Swedes? Introduction Previous Research Dual Citizenship Implications for Membership and Belonging Method and Empirical Material Citizens of Turkey and Sweden Being a Dual Citizen Conclusion 5. Turkish Maintenance and Bilingualism Among Second-Generation Turks in Multicultural Stockholm Introduction Language Development and Bilingualism Multicultural Sweden as a Special Context for Bilingual Development Previous Findings on Turkish Maintenance Among Second-Generation Turks Methodology Results and Discussion Conclusion 6. Turkish Media Space in Sweden: The Case of Turkish Broadcasts in Swedish Public Service Radio Media Spaces, Diaspora, Diasporic Media Media Spaces of the Turkish Community in Sweden Turkish Broadcasts in Sveriges Radio Turkish Broadcasts on Sveriges Radio: Roles and Dynamics Suspension of Merhaba Conclusion 7. Organising of Turkish Migrants in Metropolitan Stockholm: From National Federation to Women, Youth and Other Associations Introduction People from Kulu and Others Swedish Multiculturalism and Migrant Associations Foundation and Differentiation Turkish Cultural Associations Turkish Migrant Women in Sweden Turkish Youth in Sweden and their Organising Process Conclusion 8. The Transnational Activism of the Kurdish Diaspora and the Swedish Approach to the Kurdish Question Introduction The Kurdish Diaspora in Sweden Kurdish Political Mobilisation and Cultural Production in Sweden The Swedish Approach to the Kurdish Question in Sweden Conclusion 9. In Search of a New Home: The Assyrian Diaspora in Sweden Introduction The Early Years: Alienation and the Revival of Nationalism Successes and Failures of Multiculturalism: Assyrians from Sweden, Swedish Assyrians or Swedes with Assyrian Roots? ‘The Winds of Change Blow Harder’ Turkey and the Assyrian Diaspora since the 1990s Conclusion Appendix 1: Members of the Swedish parliament with Assyrian background Index